The MediatorShadowland Jesse's POV
by x.Lorna.Disasterr.x
Summary: This is the first book of the Mediator series- Shadowland Love you to death from Jesse's POV. I hope you enjoy
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Here I was, walking around this house again, even thought I know every single nook and cranny inside it. It was just another normal night for me, having nothing to, besides walking through the walls of this aged house and wandering aimlessly around it. Haunting the same residence does become little dull, especially if you have been here for over a hundred and fifty years, walking down the same hall, passing through the same walls, looking at the same items – the wooden stands, surfboards, electronic bits and pieces and the stained-glass windows. As well as that, I have watched the world go past in front of my eyes and even though everything is constantly changing, I feel like as if nothing moved on fast enough anymore. I suppose this may have something to do with the fact that I have lots and lots of time on my hands...perhaps forever.

As usual, I just decided to sit down on the window seat, which the father of the Ackerman family that lives here built for a mistress who was moving into this room tomorrow and started read one of the few books in this house. It held little interest for me as I skimmed over the pages as I've read it many times already. After a while, I decided to just sit and watch the sun rise, watching it throw magnificent colours across the sky, painting it brilliant orange, yellow, red and pink. This was one of my favourite times in a day, watching the sun rise, almost feeling the crisp, fresh air and the listening to the birds waking up and chirping merrily. I enjoyed this moment for a while, thinking how much of a shame it was that the people who were alive were sleeping, instead of enjoying this, because you can never really appreciate it fully once you're just a ghost on Earth. I suppose you never really know how much you take for granted until it's been taken away from you. I wistfully watched the rest of the sun-rise and finally, heard the noises which indicated that the Ackerman family were waking up.

"Come on guys, we need to get going soon," the father, Andy called out to his three sons and new wife. "David, have you got the sign ready?" He asked his youngest son.

"Brad has it," David answered, his reply accompanied by some banging, talking and footsteps.

I sighed and sat down on the window seat of the room again and trying not to think about the fact that I wouldn't have this room to myself anymore very soon. This property used to be a boarding house back when I was alive and it had been built in 1849 but now, a century and a half later, it belongs to the Ackerman's. It was and still is a very grand and beautiful Victorian building, with many rooms and a large backyard filled with pine trees, where there used to be a barn. Back then, building had a big reputation around here as many gunfights were staged here and there are even bullet holes in some of the walls.

I gazed out the window, which gives a spectacular view of the sea watching the seagulls fly around in the clear blue sky. I watched them soaring in the sky, alive and free and longed to be like them, alive and well but now I've learnt to accept the fact that it was impossible considering all that's left of me was my sprit or otherwise known as a ghost, caught somewhere between life and death.

I heard some footsteps and then the front door close as the Ackerman family made their way to their car and drove off. I knew that they were going to the airport to pick up Andy's (the father) stepdaughter, who was moving here into this very room from her old home, which she apparently shared with her mother for many years and now that the mother has remarried, they're moving here. I picked up a lot of loose information by accidentally overhearing their conversations but I know that I don't bother them as they didn't even know I existed, with them walking right through me, not being able to see or hear me.

I'm not sure how long I sat there for, just watching the sunny, bright sky and sea, when I heard the car of the Ackerman's drive up into the driveway. I heard them talking, but now, there was a new voice mingled in with the rest. It was feminine voice and it sounded quite pleasant although she spoke in a proud, demanding manner. When they got out and climbed up the porch steps, which were under this room, no-one spoke and when the mother finally broke the silence by saying: "Come on Suze. Come see your room," there was no reply. What did that imply? That the daughter wasn't happy that she was moving here? I heard three pairs of footsteps walking toward this room, one set a little hesitant and I saw Andy, the mother and the young mistress...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

My eyes widened as I looked at her. She looked about 16 or 17 years old with a slim but toned body and her face was beautiful, with bright green eyes that seemed to shine all the time and dark lashes framed them. She had lovely wavy brown hair, which had dark and light streaks woven through it and it fell round her shoulders but she wore was, well...not something that was considered feminie and elegant to my eyes. She had on a black silk shirt and a leather motorbike jacket over it. She wore this with jeans (when I was alive, all respectable woman wore skirts or dresses) which look worn and even had holes in them as well as a tattered bag. Surely, this outlandish outfit was not the normal dress for ladies these days?

I watched her as her eyes examined the room, briefly looking in my direction and her expression grew anxious and if I'm right, there was also some anger in those piercing green eyes. What was the matter? Was she not pleased at the window seat Andy built for her? Or was it the fink, flowery and girly decorations in the room which so completely contrasted with her clothes? Her mother was watching her hesitantly and when she saw the mistress's expression, her expression fell and she said, "Oh, Suze. Not again."

What did she mean by not again? I watched the mistress curiously as she slowly turned back towards her mother and said, "Never mind, Mum. Everything's fine. The room is great. Thanks so much."

Her mother didn't seem to believe her but all she said was, "Well, I'm glad you like it. I was sort of worried. I mean, I know how you get about … well, old places."

I was even more curious now, wondering what the mistress didn't like about old places. After a while, the mistress just said, "Really, Mom, it's great. I love it."

Andy, who has just been standing in the doorway walked in after hearing this and hurried excitedly around the room, clapping his hands to show the mistress how to use the clap-on and clap-off lights and some other little technological items which he installed, clearly trying to make the mistress happy and she followed him around smiling in delight.

After showing the mistress everything, Andy left and it was just the mother and daughter left in the room.

"Is it _really_ all right, Suze?" the mother wanted to know. "I know it's a big change. I know it's asking a lot of you –"

"It's fine, mum. Really," the mistress interrupted while taking off her leather jacket as it was a very warm day.

"I mean, asking you to leave Grandma, and Gina, and New York. It's selfish of me, I know. I know things haven't been … well, easy for you. Especially since Daddy died," the mum continued, "Poor you, having to move so far away from home into this different place which must be really strange for you and suddenly having to share a house with some step-brothers and everything."

The mistress listened patiently to the mother and when the mother started to get emotional, she went over to reassure her. After a while, the mother finally accepted the mistress's reassurances that everything was fine and that she would be happy here, she went downstairs to help Andy with the food. As the footsteps grew further and further away, the mistress closed the door and turned around, looking right in my direction.

"All right," she said. "Who the hell are you?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

I was so startled by her sudden outburst that I nearly hit the back of my head against the window. Whoever on earth was she speaking to? I turned around to look behind me make sure that she wasn't speaking to some-one behind me but all there was, was the spectacular view. My eyes widened in alarm as I came to understand that she was speaking to me, as her penetrating eyes were trained directly on mine but how was this possible that a human is able to see me?

"_Nombre de Dios,"_ I whispered, caught so off-guard that I spoke in Spanish, which was my first language as I was of Spanish heritage.

"It's no use calling on your higher power," she stated while swinging a leg over her chair and sat down in a very un-lady like position, facing the back of the seat. "In case you haven't noticed, He isn't paying a whole lot of attention to you. Otherwise, He wouldn't have left you here to fester for -," she paused as she examined my clothing and continued, "What is it, a hundred and fifty years? Has it really been that long since you croaked?"

I listened to her, transfixed. It was difficult for me to understand some of what she said.

"What is...croaked?" I asked her and she flicked some of her shiny brown hair over her shoulder.

"Kicked the bucket, Checked out. Popped off. Bit the dust." She stated as if were obvious.

I had no clue what she was saying and that must have showed because she finally said exasperatedly, "Died."

"Oh. Died," I mused. What a particular way the mistress talked! She could see and hear me as well!

"I don't understand," I said in wonder, "how it is that you can see me. All these years, no one has ever –"

"Yeah, well, listen, the times, you know, they are 'changin'. So what's your glitch?" she interrupted with her lovely voice.

"Glitch?" I questioned. It's a wonder how much the English language has changed over the years.

"Yeah, she replied, Glitch. Problem. Why are you still here?"

I looked at her with questioning eyes and watched as she reached up and gave her beautiful hair a ruffle and noticed that she had long, slender fingers with bright pink nails.

"_Why haven't you gone to the other side_?" she explained exasperatedly.

"___What do you mean_?" I asked, although I understood what she was asking. The problem is that I didn't really want to talk about the reason that I'm still here. Maybe it's because I wasn't too sure myself.

"What do you mean, you don't know what I mean? You're _dead_. You don't belong here. You're supposed to be off doing whatever it is that happens to people after they're dead. Rejoicing in heaven, or burning in hell, or being reincarnated, or ascending another plane of consciousness, or whatever. You're not supposed to be just…well, just _hanging around_." She said crisply. I could tell she was getting frustrated with me and that amused me. I haven't spoken to anyone for over a century and this mistress was a very amusing person to talk to...

"And what if I happen to like just _hanging around_?" I teased her, smiling to myself.

"Look, you can do all the hanging around you want, _amigo_. Slack away. I don't really care. But you can't do it here." She stated, getting up and standing with her hands on her hips, looking very annoyed.

"Jesse" I corrected, my smile growing wider.

"What?" she asked.

"You called me amigo. I thought you might like to know I have a name. It's Jesse," I introduced myself.

Then I suddenly realised something. I had introduced myself to her as _Jesse,_ my mother's nickname for me. My proper name is actually Hector De Silva but my mother had called me Jesse ever since I was born, because my mother told me that she lost a child - my brother. My brother was a still-born and my mother was devastated. That brother was to be named Jesse and so when I came into the world, my mother wanted to name me Jesse butt my father wouldn't allow it so Jesse became a nickname for me. The only person who has ever called me Jesse was my mother.

"Right. That figures. Well, fine. Jesse, then. You can't stay here, Jesse," the mistress said.

If my heart were still beating, it would have stopped then and there. Hearing her beautiful voice wrapped around my name Jesse was enough to make me shaky. I pulled myself together and continued on as if I wasn't affected.

"And you?" I asked. It felt nice to smile for the first time in so long. In fact, I was enjoying myself, even though the mistress didn't look too pleased.

.

"And me, what?" She said flatly.

"What is your name?" I asked smiling some more.

She narrowed her deep green eyes at me and blew a strand of her hair away from her face and then pressed her palm against her forehead.

"Look. Just tell me what you want, and get out. I'm hot, and I want to change clothes. I don't have time for –"

I interrupted her, amused and said, "That woman – your mother – called you Suzie. Short for Susan?"

"Susannah, as in, 'Don't you cry for me.'" She informed me.

"I know the song," I answered, pleased that I knew at least one thing that she was talking about.

"Yeah. It was probably in the top forty the year you were born, huh?"

Now she was teasing me. I raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"So this is your room now, is it, Susannah?" I asked conversationally although I already knew the answer. Secretly, I was somehow pleased that this was true.

"Yeah, this is my room now. So you're going to have clear out."

"_I'm_ going to have to clear out? This has been my home for a century and a half. Why do _I_ have to leave it?" I questioned, teasing her just a little bit.

"Because this is _my_ room. I'm not sharing it with some dead cowboy."

A COWBOY?! That mistress had no right to call me one of those donkey-riding, dim witted, pride less cowboys! Even if I had teased her, but that was all in good nature. A COWBOY! Nobody dares to call me one, especially when I don't act like one. Infuriated, I slammed my foot down and stood up, looking down at her, since I was so much taller than her.

"I am _not_ a cowboy," I growled, adding some not too polite words in Spanish quietly.

I was so infuriated that the objects around me, especially her delicate-looking mirror started to shake. It isn't on purpose but when I'm angry, that also occurs – almost like a reflex of the objects around me.

"Whoa, down. Down, boy." She commanded, her eyes widening.

What did she think I was? A fluffy puppy that skips around in some cowboy hat?! Now I really am in a rage.

"My family," I raged, wagging a finger in front of her, "worked like slaves to make something of themselves in this country, but never, never as a _vaquero_ –"

"Hey," she interrupted, grabbing my finger, yanking my hand and pulling me toward me so close that I could see the darker flecks of green and brown in her eyes and hissed, "Stop with the mirror already. And stop shoving your finger in my face. Do it again, and I'll break it."

Suddenly all my anger was replaced by horror and wonder. All I could concentrate on was her smooth hand wrapped around my finger and her darkened green eyes cutting into me. I stood there, frozen by her boldness as well as her touch. Then, she suddenly flung my hand away as if it were garbage and put her hands on her hips. I looked down at my hands, astonished. Were all human hands really that warm and soft? My hands looked the same but now, they feel sort of...tingly. I didn't dare to move my hand as it felt as if it would suddenly explode into flames, but somehow, the sensation was pleasant in an odd way.

"Now, look, Jesse. This is my room, understand? You can't stay here. You've either got to let me help you get to where you're supposed to go, or you're going to have to find some other house to haunt. I'm sorry, but that's the way it is," _Susannah _said firmly.

I looked up from my hand to her. Normal humans don't act like this!

"Who _are_ you?" I asked, softly finally able to speak. "What kind of-,"

I stopped halfway through my sentence because I wasn't sure what she was. Surely she wasn't a _girl_... not a normal or human one at least, but what can I call her then? It would be polite to call her a girl, no matter what she was, I concluded.

"- girl are you?"

"I'll tell you what kind of girl I'm not. I am _not_ the kind of girl who's looking to share her room with a member of the opposite sex. Understand me? So either you move out, or I force you out. It's entirely up to you. I'll give you some time to think about it. But when I get back here, Jesse, I want you gone." She snapped and turned around and stalked right out the door as I stared at her back in a daze.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

I stared at the door that she slammed in front of me, just standing there for who knows how long, millions of thoughts running through my mind. How much did the mistress – Susannah know about...well, ghosts? She closed the door behind her but expected me to get out of her room, which I assumed to mean that she knew I could walk through walls and what exactly was she? She could see me, had enough knowledge about ghosts and I don't think all human girls looked as beautiful as her.

I sighed and turned around to face the pink bedroom once again. It suddenly didn't look like the place where I was supposed to be in. I didn't belong in this room, not with the extraordinary mistress and the elegant furnishings. My eyes skimmed over her enormous trunks, filled with her belongings. How much things does the she have in there? I shook my head and smiled to myself, walking over to pick up the leather jacket she carelessly flung onto the floor even though it wasn't my business but I didn't have anything better to do. I had just started to fold the jacket when a beautiful tortoiseshell hairclip fell out, very much like the one my mother used to wear, except that Susannah's was slightly more rounded and has different flower carvings on them.

I sighed again. What was I going to do? I stood up and walked through the door and into the hallway. I couldn't reside in the hallway; the mistress probably wouldn't permit it anyways. Argh, what was I thinking? I should be able to decide where I want to go for myself and by myself, not questioning whether the mistress would permit, but somehow, the mistress is...convincing. She had that kind of power over people; I could tell by the way her mother listens to her and seeks her approval.

I made my way down the stairs of the house and slowly and carefully walked in to lounge room. I heard Susannah's voice ringing out from the kitchen so I avoided going in there. Besides, the kitchen feels...odd somehow, like a instinct telling me that the slightly cooler and sharper air around here is something to avoid. I walked through the lounge room wall and into the backyard, ignoring the voices inside the kitchen but just as I was about to sit down on a branch of the largest tree, I caught a glimpse of a human head disappearing. Disappearing. The way only a ghost like myself can. And the head was just next to Susannah so she must have seen him. Has she brought some company here as well? I shook my head and told myself I must be imagining things as there was no other ghost haunting this house besides myself.

I jumped off the tree when the mistress' mother walked into the kitchen as I wasn't sure I wanted to see more crying. I made my way back up to my- Susannah's room and swung myself out of her window, closing it behind me. I didn't bother to walk up to the attic and climbing onto the roof from there as swing out of this window could do me no harm at all, even if I somehow fell. I extended my arms out behind me, pressing my palms against the roof and leant back, tilting my head up to the sky, where the sun was setting, throwing flames across the sky once again. I closed my eyes and stretched my legs out in front of me, listening to the faint voices floating up from the kitchen.

"Are you sure you don't want help unpacking? I feel terrible. I should have-" The mistress's mother was saying.

"No I don't need help. I'll go unpack in a bit." Susannah replied before adding, "I'd better go, I don't want to miss the beginning of the movie."

I heard some murmurs after that and then tuned out as none of voices belonged to Susannah's. Instead, I listened to the crickets chirping around me and relished the freeing sensation of sitting here, now.

When the sky turned black, I walked toward the edge of the roof, dangling my legs over the edge it and listened to the footsteps making their way into the room below me. They walked towards the window, sliding it open, oblivious to me, just sitting a few feet away. After the footsteps walked to the en-suit and then back into the room, turning the lights off, I swung my legs back over the edge and lay on my back on the edge of the roof softly singing, _"Oh, Susannah, now don't you cry for me, 'cause I come from Alabama with this banjo on my knee_," smiling to the sky.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The members of the Ackerman Family were definitely not morning people. I laughed silently to myself as I watched the oldest son- Jake, practically sleep walked right into the glass door leading to the backyard. He stopped for a moment, as if he was wondering what it was that he had walked into and then with half-shut eyes walk back into the kitchen in a daze, rubbing his forehead with a confused expression. After him came the younger two boys, grumbling to one another about nothing in particular while Andy flipped over some fancy, flat cakes that consisted mostly of flour, eggs and milk in a pan.

I leaned back against the trunk of the tree I was sitting on and my eyes wandered up to Susannah's room unconsciously and found her sitting in front of her mirror applying far too much make-up. She shouldn't cover up so much of her beauty, I thought to myself as she put layers and layers of some black goo on her eyelashes. I watched for a moment before I realised that she probably wouldn't like it too much if she knew I was watching, which was probably invading her privacy. Deciding to leave her be, I stood up and jumped down from the branch and walked down to the beach considering it was just a few hundred feet away as I could walk right through all the houses and fences.

When I got there, it was empty except for a couple walking down the edge of the sand hand-in-hand, looking completely and utterly content. The man said something into the lady's ear and they both laughed silently, warmly while gazing into each other's eyes so lovingly I had to look away. Unexpectedly, I felt a pang of sadness, knowing I won't be able to ever do that, to enjoy this with someone I loved, someone I cared about anymore. I walked down to the water's edge and stared out into the blue ocean, the gentle but strong waves careful not to look in the couple's direction.

This was not how everything was supposed to turn out. I had my whole life ahead of me when it so abruptly ended that night... If only I had the chance to live a normal life, to continue working on my father's ranch, get married, have children and enjoy life until old age and then pass away naturally, peacefully.

I lifted a pebble by looking at it with my eyes and sent it skimming across the water, breaking through the water.

Everyone that I had ever cared about had gone, away from earth, moved on to wherever they were supposed to. I had watched them all go with my very eyes, watching them slip away, watching my mother all those years ago on her bed, weak and slowly fading away, wishing I were able to bid her farewell, to be with her when she went. Everyone gone but me...

I had been so consumed in my thoughts that I hadn't realised that the beach had become more populated. Now that it wasn't so peaceful and mysterious anymore, the beach didn't interest me as much. I decided I might as well do something instead of standing and daydreaming since I was going to be stuck here for who knows how long. Everyone seemed to have a purpose; they all seemed to be doing _something_. I looked around me and wondered what Susannah was doing right now. She was probably at school by now doing-

What was it that they do at school these days? It had to be different from when I was in school. Curious, I decided to take a trip down to what used to be a large paddock but now, a school was in its place - Junipero Serra Catholic Academy. I closed my eyes and pictured the back part of the paddock, dematerialising. I reappeared in an empty room filled with brooms and other dusty items. I walked out and looked around, not knowing where I should head for. I wandered across the schoolyard and went into what I supposed was the main building as it was the largest red dome. There was a large, wooden archway just in front of the entrance and I walked through, examining the surrounding plants and the twisting vines surrounding some of the aged walls.

It was really a beautiful place, large and grand although something was not right. I had expected more company. Not the alive ones either. I suppose I was quite relieved that this was so because I wasn't too fond of other spirits but the way that all the hallways and rooms were spirit-free un-nerved me a little but I was too curious to leave. As I walked through another hallway, I heard a laugh. A laugh I could recognise even though I've never actually heard it before. I smiled and stopped in my tracks, not wanting her to see me as I knew she was capable of doing that. Hiding in a deserted classroom, I listened some more.

"Mrs. Ackerman, what a pleasure to see you again. And this must be Susannah Simon. Come in, won't you?" I heard a deep, soothing say which I assumed belonged to the headmaster.

I heard them making their way away from the room when suddenly, they stopped.

"Oh, no, Mr. McTavish. Not on the first day of a brand new semester." I heard the headmaster say.

"What can I say? The broad hates me." Replied a boy's sarcastic but friendly voice.

I raised my eyebrow. What was a broad? I had a feeling that it wasn't very nice and this suspicion was confirmed by a voice saying, "Kindly do not refer to Sister Ernestine as a broad, Mr. McTavish. I will see to you in a moment, after I have spoken with these ladies."

The headmaster then continued walking again, into what I assumed was his office but I didn't risk walking closer to hear the conversation just in case I was seen by Susannah. After a little while they all came out into the reception area again and Susannah's mother kissed Susannah good-bye and left while the headmaster walked Susannah across the courtyard, instructing the boy who called one of the sisters a "broad" to wait for him.

"No prob, _Padre_," The boy replied.

The boy then waited until the headmaster's back was turned and flashed Susannah what looked like a suggestive smile. I was horrified that the boy had been so forward and disrespectful but all Susannah did was smile back and she even flicked her hair. I was stunned but also a little angry that the boy was so disrespectful to a lady, especially Susannah.

As the headmaster and Susannah walked way, I stared at the chair the boy was sitting on, willing it to tip over and teach the boy a lesson. The chair started shaking under my intense stare and finally, it tipped back, causing the boy to grab the edges of his chair in alarm, eyes growing wide. Not wanting to hurt him, I eased my stare and the chair righted itself. I watched in satisfaction as he boy jumped up and looked around him, bewildered.

I shook my head and started walking behind Susannah and the headmaster, always making sure that I wasn't within range for her to see me. We walked past many classrooms filled with children, talking or doing some work. I didn't pay much attention to them as we walked past them as I found the two figures walking in front of me more interesting. We walked past rows and rows of little cabinet things with numbers on them and I assumed that this was where the students kept some of their belongings as a couple of students were taking books out of them and then locking them back up again. As we walked down the hallway, Susannah suddenly stopped. Still wondering what was going on, I heard a hard, cold female voice say, "What, are you looking at?"

Surprised, I immediately hid behind the doorframe of one of the classrooms, peeking out slightly so I could see what was going on. From here, I saw a tall, golden-haired girl. She was quite pretty but she looked bland next to Susannah. I looked at her more carefully and then I noticed something was wrong. This girl had a slight glow around her – a glow only ghosts like me have.

"_This_ is who they let in to take my place? I am _so_ sure," the ghost girl continued, this time looking directly at the headmaster.

Shocked, I turned my gaze towards the headmaster. He was an ordinary person, except for the fact that he's a priest but that shouldn't make much different. Could he see her as well like Susannah can? How many people could see ghosts? They could have been all around me for all I know. I had thought that no-one could see, hear or touch ghosts but ever since I met Susannah, nothing had really been the norm anymore. The headmaster looked quite calm as he turned to look at Susannah, who spun around wide-eyed and open-mouthed. She stared up at the headmaster with confused eyes.

The headmaster took one look at her expression and said quietly, "Ah, I thought so,"


	6. Chapter 6

**Note: I'm really sorry that I haven't been updating this story but I was really busy the last couple of months but now it's the holidays so you can expect more chapters to be put on more frequently now =] Enjoy ~**

**Chapter 6**

My eyes widened as I watched the conversation. How in the world is all this _possible? _Susannah looked from the ghost to Father Dominic (I saw his name on his office door as we walked past) and the back to the ghost- then back to Father Dominic. She asked the same question that was festering inside my head.

"You can _see_ her?" She asked in disbelief.

Father Dominic nodded calmly, "Yes. I suspected when I first heard your mother speak about you – and your_ … problems_ at your old school – that you might be one of us, Susannah. But I couldn't be sure, of course, so I didn't say anything. Although the name Simon, I'm sure you're aware, is from the Hebrew word meaning "intent listener," which, as a fellow mediator, you of course would be. We mediators need to be intent listeners to find out what's troubling the ghosts that we have to help move on to heaven. I was curious of your abilities and what you have done back where you used to live. It's such a pleasure to find someone else with the same gift."

I stood frozen, absorbing the Father's long speech. During my whole entire existence, I have never met someone- a human that possess the powers which these two humans standing just metres away from me had. In just a week of the hundreds of years of my existence, I met _two_ mediators. How can Father Dominic know all of this? I wondered how for how long had he been able to interact with spirits...had both of them been born with this power and how many others possessed it as well? Suddenly I became slightly cautious as before, I believed that humans were harmless and weak against spirits but now, I am questioning the abilities of a couple of them.

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Susannah shouting, "So _that's_ why there aren't any Indian spirits around here, _you_ took care of them. Jeez, I was _wondering_ what happened to them all. I expected to find hundreds! "

"Well, there weren't hundreds, exactly, but when I first arrived, there were quite a few but it was nothing, really. I was only doing my duty, after all, making use of the heavenly gift I received from God," Father Dominic stated timidly.

Susannah scrunched her nose in a sort-of cute way and said, "Is _that_ who's responsible for it?"

"But of course ours is a gift from God." Father Dominic said with sympathy as if he pitied Susannah because she didn't have complete faith in the lord. "Where else do you think it could come from?"

"I don't know. I've always kind of wanted to have a word with the guy in charge, you know? Because, given a choice, I'd much rather not have been blessed with this particular gift," Susannah contemplated.

"But why ever not, Susannah?"

"All it does is get me into trouble. Do you have any idea how many hours I've spent in psychiatrists' offices? My mom's convinced I'm a complete schizo," Susannah said exasperatedly.

I stifled a slight laughter as she said this and although I hadn't exactly understood what schizo meant, I could guess by the way it was said. I didn't blame Susannah's mum as Susannah definitely not the average human girl...she was- extraordinary.

"Yes," Father Dominic mused. "Yes, I could see how a miraculous gift like ours might be considered by a layperson as – well, unusual."

"Unusual?" Susannah exclaimed, "Are you _kidding_ me?"

This conversation is getting more and more humorous and the ghost, whom the two humans seemed to have forgotten, stood there watching with a confused but sarcastic expression on her face.

"I suppose I have been rather sheltered here in the Mission," Father Dominic admitted. "It never occurred to me that it must be extremely difficult for those of you out in the, er, trenches, so to speak, with no real ecclesiastical support –"

"Those of us?" Susannah said, again seeming to take the word right out of my mouth. "You mean there's more than just you and me?"

"Well, I just assumed...surely there must be. We can't be the last of our kind. No, no, surely there are others," Father Dominic said with the slightest hint of a concerned frown.

"Excuse me," the ghost interrupted, rolling her eyes, "But would you mind telling me what's going on here? Who is this bitch? Is she the one taking my place?"

A 'bitch'... female dog? I wondered, confused. People these days say the most unusual things.

"Hey! Watch your mouth, this guy's a priest you know," Susannah retorted giving the ghost a dirty look.

"Uh, duh. I know he's a priest. He's only been trying to get rid of me all week," The ghost sneered.

Father Dominic's face became slightly red as Susannah turned to him with surprise.

"Well, you see, Heather's being a bit obstinate-"Father Dominic said sheepishly.

"If you think, that I'm going to just stand back and let you assign my locker to this bitch –"

Anger flared in me when I heard the ghost call Susannah a 'bitch' again in the permanent sneer her voice always seemed to be masked in and I had to bite back a –growl, almost.

"Call me a bitch one more time missy, and I'll make sure you spend the rest of eternity inside that locker of yours." Susannah said, narrowing her eyes.

Wow, Susannah really is anything but ordinary, I marvelled as she stood, fiery and almost frightening. This mistress was dangerous in so many ways.

"Bi-it-ch-h" the ghost spat out, stretching the word out and looking directly at Susannah without a hint of fear, which I suspected was due to the fact that she didn't know that Susannah could _physically_ touch a ghost instead of walking right through us, as I knew _too_ well with my own encounter. Suddenly, I almost felt sorry for the girl ghost.

With blinding speed, Susannah pulled back her tightly clenched fist and punched the ghost squarely in the stomach, sending the ghost, now with a terrified and hopeless expression on her face, reeling into the lockers, leaving a body-shaped dent in them. With such fear and surprise, the ghost girl got up unsteadily and hurtled as fast as she could down the corridor with a whimper escaping her lips. I suspected my expression when Susannah first touched me was similar to the shock represented in the ghost's face.

"Huh. Chicken," Susannah said, blowing on her knuckles and shaking her hair back.

"So," Susannah said casually, turning back to the Father, "What were you saying?"

Father Dominic was still staring at the dent in the lockers, stunned and then said rather dryly, for a priest, "Interesting mediation techniques they're teaching out east these days."

"Hey, nobody calls me names and gets away with it. I don't care how tortured he was in his past life. Or hers."

"There are some things we need to discuss, you and I," Father Dominic replied thoughtfully and then just as Susannah was about to reply, he put a finger to his lips, looking towards a door next to them.

A man opened the door and walked out, probably having heard the ghost ram into the lockers.

"Everything alright Dom?" He asked when he saw the Father.

"Everything's fine, Carl," Father Dominic assured. "Just fine. And look what I've brought you." Father Dominic placed a hand on Susannah's shoulder. "Your newest pupil, Susannah Simon. Susannah, meet your homeroom teacher, Carl Walden."

"How do you do Mr. Walden?" Susannah said as she boldly held out her hand.

"Just fine, Miss Simon. Just fine," He said as he shook the hand Susannah held out. "Nice to have you with us," he said and then turned to Father Dominic, "Thanks, Dom, for bringing her over."

"Not a problem. We were just having a little difficulty with her locker. You probably heard it. Didn't mean to disturb you. I'll have the custodian look into it. In the meantime, Susannah, I'll expect you to be back in my office at three, to, um, fill out the rest of those forms.

"Oh, no can do, Father. My ride leaves at three," Susannah replied smiling innocently.

"Then I'll send you a pass. Expect one around two," the Father scowled as they made their way into the classroom.

"Okay," Susannah cheekily waggled some fingers at him. "Buh-bye."

They turned around to face a classroom full of open-mouthed students, who stared at Susannah, clearly shocked by her boldness when she waggled her fingers and said 'buh-bye' at the principal. I laughed silently from my new hiding place, in a classroom opposite the one Susannah was in. Susannah looked like the black sheep. Actually, she literally the black sheep, I noticed, dressed in a predominantly black outfit when not one person in the room was wearing black. She gazed at her classmates and seemed to be uncomfortable standing there. Standing out at the front of the class, she was instructed by Mr. Walden to introduce herself.

As she introduced herself, I noticed that her class just stared blankly at her. After the introduction, she was told to take a seat and I noticed there were only two empty seats left in the classroom. One was next to a girl that was pretty like the girl ghost earlier. She was tanned, had honey-blonde hair and was what I guessed the girl all the other young misses wanted to be. The other empty seat was at the back of the room, beside an albino girl, with shockingly white hair and pink skin.

Without hesitation, Susannah strode straight to the back of the room and sat down next to the albino girl. This surprised me as I expected her to sit beside the other girl, who was clearly popular.

"God, sit by the freak, why don't you?" A miss who also looked like the typical 'popular' type sitting a few seats away snickered quietly enough so that the teacher couldn't hear. I was a little surprised that she said this as Susannah also looked to be the popular type of girl too, but more beautiful, less materialistic and more extraordinary.

"Excuse me do you have Tourette's?" Susannah answered, not even attempting to be silent.

Everyone, including the teacher, who had been writing on the whiteboard turned around and stared at Susannah.

"What?" The girl blinked, startled, obviously not used to people using comebacks against her.

"Tourette's Syndrome," I repeated. "It's a neurological disorder that causes people to say things they don't really mean. Do you have it?" Susannah asked, smiling sweetly.

The girl's face was now bright red with embarrassment. "No."

"Oh, so you were purposefully being rude."

"I wasn't calling _you_ a freak," the girl backpedalled quickly.

"I'm aware of that," Susannah said. "That's why I'm only going to break _one_ of your fingers after school, instead of _all_ of them."

I raised my eyebrows at this but I wasn't really surprised. I was used to Susannah's brashness now. The girl who called the albino a freak spun around to face the front of this classroom immediately after the threat and Susannah sat back in her seat, while the albino girl next to her turned a deep shade of red, flushed with embarrassment.

Everyone had started whispering and they ignored the teacher when the called everyone to order. Finally, after trying to quieten the students down for 10 minutes, he slammed his fist down onto the desk and told them that if they had so damned much to say, we could say it in a thousand word essay on the battle at Bladensburg during the War of 1812, double-spaced, and due on his desk first thing tomorrow morning.

The class settled down immediately, grieved by the fact that they had to write an essay and went back to work. Susannah sighed; looking around the classroom twirling a lock of hair around her fingers then turned towards the window behind her and looked out over the parking lot, at the peaceful blue ocean, with an un-readable expression on her face.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Humans nowadays are pretty much what I've expected them to be, I realised as I gazed around the room at the students and the teacher. They weren't too interesting and a large proportion of them seemed a bit superficial and alike the person sitting next to them. Well, everyone but Susannah.

Immediately after the teacher dismissed the class, the girl who called the albino a freak scampered out of the classroom with her petty friends following behind. When they came out into the hallway, about 20 feet away from where I was hiding, they stood together whispering to each other and casting menacing glances in Susannah's direction, who pointedly ignored them.

I caught parts of their conversation, mainly consisting of the words 'freaks', 'losers' and 'bitch'. I shook my head and tried to ignore the scathing whispers as I know the unintentional damage I could cause if I let myself become upset.

Back inside the classroom, the albino girl next to Susannah turned towards her and glowered furiously at her, her entire head an alarming shade of red.

"Am I supposed to be grateful to you, or something, for what you said to Debbie?" the Albino girl said, pushing her glasses up.

"You," Susannah said pursing her lips slightly, "Aren't supposed to be anything as far as I'm concerned."

While she was talking, Susannah gathered up her books and stood up. The albino miss did the same then said, "But that's why you did it, right? Defended the albino? Because you felt sorry for me?"

"I did it because Debbie was a troll," Susannah said simply while slinging her coat over her arm.

I smiled slightly at her calling the girl a 'troll'. Modern day insults never fail to amuse me. It looked the albino miss also found this slightly amusing as she struggled to keep a straight face. "I can fight my own battles, you know. I don't need your help, New York," she growled.

"Fine with me Carmel," Susannah shrugged.

The albino miss had to smile at this and when her mouth opened up into a smile, I observed some bits of metal and wire on her teeth. Why did people put metal in on their teeth? It made no sense to me but I smiled to myself as I found the sight pretty amusing.

"It's Cee Cee," the albino miss informed Susannah.

"What's Cee Cee?" Susannah enquired.

"My name. I'm Cee Cee." She then held out her hand which was frightening. The nails were a shocking orange colour and I couldn't help but stare at it in horror and wonder. "Welcome to the Mission Academy."

Susannah shook the hand, without reacting in any way to the bright orange. They began to make their way out of the classroom and a few other students walked up to them, introducing themselves to Susannah. I quickly hid in the next empty classroom as they walked into the hallway, where they were greeted by another mob of students and Cee Cee introduced Susannah to them.

I noticed that everyone that she had introduced to Susannah were unlike the superficial, tanned girls who have now strutted away, shooting disgusted glances behind them. These people weren't what would typically be considered good looking but they had their own unique features that defined them as individuals and they seemed to be a lot nicer than the tanned girls.

These people trailed along after Susannah and Cee Cee as they walked to their next class, firing questions at Susannah about life in New York.

"Was the weather similar to here or is it really, really freezing?" Someone called out.

"Did you have like, lots and lots of heaps glam shops back there? You know, where all those celebs shop at."

"Are the streets really modern and busy like in those movies? That would be so cool to live there wouldn't it?"

Susannah answered their questions airily and Cee Cee suddenly turned to Susannah and informed Susannah that she was the editor of the school newspaper and that she would like Susannah to write a piece about the differences between living here and New York.

Susannah accepted reluctantly and Cee Cee laughed a loud, somehow horsey laugh that made me laugh as well. They sat through a couple of other classes while I watched from the outside. As I listened in on their conversations, it turned out that Cee Cee was witty and made wise cracks throughout the day accompanied by her amusing laugh.

At lunch, they sat down on a bench outside along with most of the mob earlier and they chatted, laughed and teased one another, having a good time.

I watched Susannah as she sat down with her food – fries and something else which resembled a sandwich. She started eating and at one point, threw a fry out at the seagulls hovering around.

That was the most amusing sight I've seen in centuries. Seagulls swooped down, surrounding her, fighting for the fry which she tossed to them and in the middle of the chaos; Susannah looked on wide-mouthed and started to scream when the seagulls came too close.

I laughed until I felt like as if I had run out of breath, watching Susannah daintily shuffling away from the seagulls. Everyone who saw this was laughing as well and one of the nuns, the one which the boy earlier called a nun told Susannah not to do it again.

Susannah sat down and stated eating again, gazing around at the students around her. She looked at her step-brothers for some time, watching the youngest bent over his laptop, the middle son punching and shoving around with his friends, surrounded by the tanned girls and lastly, her gaze wondered over to her oldest step-brother.

He was facing the sun with his eyes closed, absorbing the sun's rays and then I saw her eyes drift over to the boy sitting next to her stepbrother with interest. As she watched the boy, who was staring intently out into the sea with a mask of sadness over his face, I felt a pang of jealousy for some reason.

Although I had no reason to be, at least none that I could think of, I couldn't help but wondering what Susannah found so interesting in the boy. Sure, he was a very pleasant looking lad but I thought that she would like someone who looked happier and not so sullen.

After watching the lad for some time, Susannah finally turned to Cee Cee and asked, "Who is that guy sitting next to sleep- Jake? He looks like as if he's on drugs."

Hearing this, I felt a little relieved. Maybe Susannah was only staring at the lad because worried that her step-brother had drug taking friends, not because she found him attractive.

"Oh, that's Bryce Martinson. No, he's not on drugs. He's just sad, you know, 'cause his girlfriend died over the break." Cee Cee replied.

"Really? How'd she die?" Susannah asked, distractedly taking a bite out of her food.

"Bullet through the head," the lad from the principal's office – Adam, his name was, "Blew off the back of her head."

"God Adam, how cold can you get?" one of the tanned girls spat, having overheard.

"Hey. I didn't like her when she was alive. I'm not gonna say I liked her now just because she's dead. In fact, if anything, I hate her more. I heard we're all going to have to do the Stations of the Cross for her on Wednesday." Adam said shrugging; pulling out a fairly large packet of what I assumed was food, from his cowhide backpack, which had the letters LV all over it.

Although I was hesitant, this Adam lad was beginning to grow on me...I liked his sense of individuality and humour, although it was a bit offensive at times.

"Right."Cee Cee confirmed, scrunching her nose. "We have to pray for her immortal soul since she committed suicide and is destined to burn in hell for all eternity now."

"Really? I thought suicides went to Purgatory." Adam said.

"No, stupid. Why do you think Monsignor Constantine won't let Kelly have her dumb memorial service? Suicide is a mortal sin. Monsignor Constantine won't allow a suicide to be memorialized in his church. He won't even let her parents bury her in consecrated ground." Cee Cee ranted. "I never liked Heather, but I _hate_ Monsignor Constantine and his stupid rules even more. I'm thinking of doing an article about it, and calling it _Father, Son, and the Holy Hypocrite_."

The other students nervously started talking, muttering to each other.

"Why'd she kill herself?" Susannah asked in the midst.

"Because of Bryce, of course. He broke up with her," Adam said as a matter of factly.

A miss leaned over to Susannah and whispered quite loudly, "I heard he did it at the mall. Can you believe it?"

"Yeah, on Christmas Eve," Another girl confirmed, "They were Christmas shopping with each other, and she pointed to this diamond ring in the window at Bergdorf's, and was like, 'I want that.' And I guess he freaked – you know, it was clearly an engagement ring – and broke up with her on the spot."

This seemed a little odd and far-fetched to me but who was I to say? My own death wasn't exactly anticipated either, but Susannah seemed to be thinking along the same line as me.

"And so she went home and shot herself?" Susannah asked sceptically, while raising her eyebrows.

"Not then," Cee Cee said."She tried to get back together with him for a while. She called him like every ten minutes, until finally his mother told her not to call anymore. Then she started sending him letters, telling him what she was going to do – you know, kill herself if he didn't get back together with her. When he didn't respond, she got her dad's forty-four and drove to Bryce's house and rang the bell."

"Yeah," Adam said enthusiastically, standing up on his chair acting out the scenario, using one of the little snacks he was eating as the gun. "The Martinsons were having a New Year's party – it was New Year's Eve – so they were home and everything. They opened up the door, and there was this crazy girl on their porch, with a gun to her head. She said if they didn't get Bryce, she was going to pull the trigger. But they couldn't get Bryce, because they'd sent him to Antigua –"

"– Hoping a little sun and surf would soothe his frazzled nerves," Cee Cee interrupted, "because, you know, he's got his college apps to worry about right now. He doesn't need to have the added pressure of a stalker."

Adam looked at her, annoyed because he was clearly enjoying telling the story. "Yeah, well, that was a gross error on the part of the Martinsons. As soon as she heard Bryce was out of the country, she pulled the trigger, and blew out the back of her skull, and bits of her brain and stuff stuck to the Christmas lights the Martinsons had strung up."

I stared at them horrified. This was absurd! All the others seemed to think so as well as they groaned at the gory detail. I shook my head to clear the horrific image and noticed that Susannah, unlike the others didn't react when she heard this detail. Instead, she appeared to be deep in thought. This frustrated me. What was the miss thinking about?

"The empty chair in homeroom. The one by what's-her-name – Kelly. That was the dead girl's seat, wasn't it?" Susannah asked, absently.

That's when it all clicked. The girl who killed herself was the ghost girl that we saw earlier this morning, the one that Susannah is now not on the best terms with. At all. Susannah must have realised this too and that's why she was so deep in thought before.

"Yeah. That's why we thought it was so weird when you walked past it. It was like you _knew_ that that was where Heather had sat. We all thought maybe you were psychic or something – "A miss sitting opposite Susannah answered.

Susannah? A psychic? I wonder if there is even more to this extraordinary miss. She seems to have abilities beyond the power of a human. A mediator even. Did she know that the seat was where the dead miss sat...was that the reason she walked right past and sat down to the albino miss? No, I didn't think that was the reason. Susannah sat there because she wasn't judgemental, but still, I think she somehow knew that the dead miss used to sit at the seat.

I looked at Susannah. She was looking at Bryce again. A worried but slightly sarcastic expression has taken over her face while she watched him, deep in thought. The lad sat, looking like a sculpture of a handsome master and watched the Pacific, and helplessness masked his face.

Now that I look at him again, he looked vulnerable and it dawned on me that his misery isn't over. Not if the ghost of his girlfriend remained and if Susannah and feelings for this lad, I have no doubt that she would try protecting him from the ghost and surely get hurt. Or worse...and I know I can't allow harm to come to this human miss.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The ghost of the girl- Heather didn't take her time in trying to take her ex boyfriend down with her. Oh no, she was hell bent on it. When Susannah and the other students were making their way around the crowded hallways of the school after lunch, I spotted her immediately.

She was standing motionless in the mass of students, who simply passed right through her. Her vivid, deathly glare was fixed right upon the Bryce lad. I hid behind one of the rows of box-like compartments and watched closely. Susannah had obviously noticed Heather's ghosts' presence as well because she was cautiously observing the ghostly figure with a calculating look in her eyes.

Suddenly, Susannah's body tensed and anger flared through her eyes along with a mixture of horror and shock. I looked up right away just in time to see one of the rafters of the archway which Bryce is standing under almost break off under the ghost miss' glare.

I knew that this was no accident. Heather's ghost, like me is capable of moving imamate objects with our eyes. As the last connecting splinter broke, the heavy block of timber broke off and horrified, I desperately tried to move the timber back up with my eyes.

At this moment, Susannah threw herself at Bryce, having deciphered the intentions of the ghost miss, and tried to push him out from under the crashing block of timber.

Although my ability to control objects is far more developed as I've had more experience with being a ghost, I was caught so off guard and paralysed with horror at Susannah's actions that I lost my focus on trying to stop the falling of the timber and stood, not unlike a statue.

Together, Susannah and Bryce fell heavily and rolled across the floor, just as the timber hit the stone floor with a shattering impact, causing chunks of the timber to fly off it in all directions, covering both Susannah and Bryce's bodies with wooden splinters.

"Excuse me. Excuse me – "I heard a voice that somewhere in the back of my mind recognised as Father Dominic's call out.

His voice snapped me out of the trance and mindlessly, I stumbled through the crowd of chaotic students, all shouting, screaming or still motionless with shock.

Just when I was about to reach Susannah, I saw father Dominic and seeing him stopped me in my tracks. I couldn't just go over there. What would Susannah and Father Dominic think if they saw me? No, what might they _do_?

"Good God in heaven," he cried, hurrying towards them. "Are you children all right? Susannah, are you hurt? Bryce?"

Painfully slowly, Susannah stood up, seeming surprisingly steady.

"Good gracious, are you sure you're alright?" Father Dominic flustered.

"I'm fine," Susannah reassured him, brushing wooden splinters off her with a look of annoyance on her face.

Upon seeing that she was alright, a breath of relief as well as burning, infuriating anger shook through me. Heather. That young miss-no, _monster _had just clearly crossed the line.

Not only, had she tried to murder the lad whom although I was not particularly fond of, had a full life ahead of him, still endangered Susannah's life as well. And she was not going to get away with it.

I furiously scanned the hallway for that subtly glowing form and then I saw her. She had a disappointed scowl twisted onto her face and when she looked up, she looked right into my rage-filled eyes and a flash of shock and fear replaced the scowl.

Although she presumably has no idea who or what I am, the ghost girl must have had a little sense in her small brain to notice my fury as she promptly turned on her heels and fled, with me pursuing not too far behind.

This Heather ghost must have known the school pretty well as she flew through wall after wall, always seeming to know where she was heading.

Like a madman, I followed her, with everything with 10 feet of me shaking furiously. My legs are burning springs, my body was on fire. The white-hot rage inside me drove me to a manic height and I ran, faster than I have ever run before.

My eyes are intent on my target. She was going down. With one last explosive stride, I flung my whole form towards the back of the other ghost.

The ghost girl under me let out an ear-splitting shriek as I pinned her down on the floor.

"Let go of me, you fucking bitch of a freak!" She screamed.

Although I had no idea of what she was calling me, I could fairly easily give an accurate prediction on what she was saying.

"I will let go of you, but only if you leave this place and never show your face around here ever again," I hissed. "Who do you think you are, to go around putting that Bryce lad and Susannah's lives in danger?"

"I can do whatever I want and Bryce is _my_ boyfriend. I only wanted him to come with me but that little slut ruined my plan," she spat, struggling to free her hands from my grip.

"Don't you dare call Susannah any names of that type, "I raged. "And yes, Bryce was your boyfriend but now that you are dead while he is alive, you two cannot be together anymore. You can't just go around murdering whoever you please just so they can be with you."

"Urgh, you think that you're such a gentleman don't you?" She smirked sarcastically. "Don't go around shitting me when you're nothing more than a hypocrite. "

"How so am I a hypocrite?" I asked, angrier than ever.

"You said that Bryce and I can never be together because I'm a ghost and he's not. Well, what about you and your precious little Susannah then?" She snarled.

"Susannah is _not_ my girlfriend and we have no feelings of that sort for each other. I just care more about other people than you do" I replied.

"Oh yeah?" Heather's ghost smirked. "So being over-protective of her, trying to get me to leave this place for her and stalking her shows that you have no feeling for her? Get real. I mean, I saw how you were looking at her just before. Also, you're pathetic. What kind of "gentleman" would hold down a girl?"

"I...." I knelt there, speechless. Do I really...? And what am I doing now? I never, _ever,_ lay my hand on a lady if she objected, even if she was a ghost and here I was, almost attacking one. Horrified, I used to think that I would never do something like this, so why did I just do that, as if blinded by something...was it just my compassion toward Susannah...or something more?

Taking advantage of my sudden confusion, Heather's ghost quickly scrambled up, ripping herself from my grip and took off before I could react.

When I could finally move, I ran after her, only to come face-to-face with countless walls and hallways. Still confused and disgusted with myself, I mindlessly stumbled in a random direction.

After a few minutes of my mindless wandering, I found myself back at the main school buildings as I walked past a couple of populated classrooms.

Suddenly, I stopped dead in my tracks. I somehow even seemed to be drawn to Susannah unconsciously, because there she was, standing in front of a row of classrooms with Bryce.

"This weekend, then," Bryce was saying. "What are you doing Saturday night?"

What was going on? Did that lad just ask Susannah to go out with him on Saturday or was I just being paranoid?

"Okay, Saturday it is. Pick me up at seven?" Susannah answered, smiling after a little hesitation.

I felt a lump in my throat sink to the pit of my stomach. The two of them are really going out together, I realised. Not the best combination, seeing as both of them seemed to attract trouble.

"Seven," Bryce nodded, flashing his white teeth in a wide smile. "See you then, if not before."

"See you then," Susannah smiled back, backing towards one of the classrooms. "Oh, and Bryce," she called just before she walked into the classroom.

"Yeah?" The lad replied curiously.

"Watch your back," Susannah said cheekily, brushing a piece of hair away from her face.

Letting out a little laugh, Bryce winked. I felt my stomach sink.

What had just happened answered all of my questions. Yes, I dreaded to admit it, but Heather was right. I did have feelings for Susannah although she didn't return them. Why else would I be standing here, so insanely jealous of some other lad, when she was clearly happy to be going out with him?

I have been so idiotic, letting myself fall for a human.

It was not right. In fact, it is appalling. I should have never followed Susannah anywhere and now I was living the consequences. I had never fallen so hard for any mistress in my whole existence- as a human and as a ghost but this was wrong.

I was nothing more than a hypocrite and there was no way in the world and beyond that I was good enough for Susannah. A ghost falling for a human? The concept was just too unrealistic.

This was not beneficial for anyone, for me or for Susannah. From this moment onwards, Jesse should just be nothing but a distant memory for Susannah.


End file.
